Kendrick Lamar Albums Ranked: Every Project, Worst to Best
Kendrick doesn't really make bad albums, so this list is less "good vs bad" and more "great vs generational." We're ranking all seven official projects, from the Compton mixtape that started it all to his most recent victory lap.
The order below leans on what critics and longtime fans tend to agree on across reviews and forum debates, with our own call where the arguments get heated (and with Kendrick, they always do). Disagree with where we put DAMN. or Mr. Morale? That's half the fun. Rank it yourself.
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SS Tier: The untouchables
To Pimp a Butterfly
Jazz, funk, spoken word and a Tupac interview that still gives people chills, all stitched into one of the most ambitious rap albums ever made. 'Alright' became a protest anthem almost by accident, and 'u' is one of the rawest self-hate songs you'll hear from a rapper at his peak. This is the one critics point to when they argue Kendrick is operating on a different level.
About To Pimp a Butterfly
Kendrick's third studio album, blending jazz, funk and spoken word into a sprawling statement on race, fame and identity.
- Released
- 2015
- Notable track
- Alright
- Recognition
- Widely ranked among the greatest hip-hop albums ever
Good Kid, M.A.A.D City
A short film in album form, following one night in Compton with more narrative discipline than most actual movies. 'Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst' alone is a masterclass in storytelling, and 'm.A.A.d city' still sounds like a city block closing in on you. Ask fans for their favorite Kendrick album and this is usually the answer, or close to it.
About Good Kid, M.A.A.D City
Kendrick's major label debut, subtitled 'A Short Film by Kendrick Lamar.' It's a narrative concept album about his teenage years in Compton.
- Released
- 2012
- Label
- Top Dawg / Aftermath / Interscope
- Notable track
- Swimming Pools (Drank)
AA Tier: Genuinely great
DAMN.
The Pulitzer Prize album, and the one that turned Kendrick into a genuine pop-chart force without losing any teeth. 'HUMBLE.' is the hit everyone knows, but 'DUCKWORTH.' is the song that rewards people who actually sit with the whole thing. Some fans think it's slightly overrated next to TPAB and GKMC, and that's a fair argument, but it's still a stacked, tightly constructed record.
About DAMN.
Kendrick's fourth studio album, a commercially huge and critically acclaimed project that won the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
- Released
- 2017
- Notable track
- HUMBLE.
- Award
- Pulitzer Prize for Music, 2018
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers
A sprawling, uncomfortable double album about therapy, trauma and generational pain, with Kendrick pulling no punches on himself. 'Mother I Sober' is as heavy as anything he's recorded, and 'N95' gave it an actual radio moment. It splits people, some call it his most mature work, others find it a slog in the back half, but the highs are undeniable.
About Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers
A double album exploring therapy, trauma and personal growth, released after a five-year gap following DAMN.
- Released
- 2022
- Notable track
- N95
GNX
A surprise release that doubled as a confident, West Coast-soaked victory lap after the Drake feud made Kendrick a bigger cultural force than ever. Tracks like 'squabble up' lean into fun, bouncy menace rather than heavy concept work, and that's exactly why it works so well this late in his career. It's less ambitious than his classics on paper, but it lands because he sounds completely in control.
About GNX
A surprise-released album that arrived after Kendrick's high-profile feud with Drake, leaning into West Coast sound and confidence.
- Released
- 2024
- Notable track
- squabble up
BB Tier: Very good, lower ceiling
Section.80
The mixtape-era debut that introduced the themes he'd spend a decade refining: crack-baby generation trauma, Compton politics, self-examination. 'HiiiPoWeR' and 'Rigamortus' show flashes of the technical rapper he'd become, even if the production feels thinner than everything after it. It's the foundation, and foundations are rarely as flashy as what's built on top of them.
About Section.80
Kendrick Lamar's independent debut album, released through Top Dawg Entertainment. It introduced his focus on storytelling and social commentary around Compton and his generation.
- Released
- 2011
- Label
- Top Dawg Entertainment
- Notable track
- HiiiPoWeR
CC Tier: Solid but a notch below
Untitled Unmastered
A collection of TPAB-era loosies and demos, released with just track numbers and timestamps instead of titles. There's real material here, 'untitled 07' in particular rides a loose, jazzy groove for nearly eight minutes, but by design this feels like scraps from a genius's notebook rather than a front-to-back statement. Good for completists, less essential for casual fans.
About Untitled Unmastered
A surprise release compiling unfinished demos from the To Pimp a Butterfly era, with tracks named only by number and date.
- Released
- 2016
- Format
- 8 untitled tracks
How we ranked them
We weighed critical reception, lyrical depth, replay value, cultural impact and how each album holds up years later. Concept and cohesion mattered too, since Kendrick treats albums as full statements, not just song collections. Where fans and critics split hard, we picked a side and said so, rather than pretending there's a tidy consensus.
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Rank these yourselfFAQ
What is Kendrick Lamar's best album according to fans and critics?
It's usually a two-way race between Good Kid, M.A.A.D City and To Pimp a Butterfly, with critics often leaning toward TPAB for its ambition and fans often leaning toward GKMC for its replay value and storytelling.
Is DAMN. better than To Pimp a Butterfly?
Most critics rank DAMN. just behind TPAB, though DAMN. is the one that won a Pulitzer Prize and produced his biggest commercial hits.
Is Untitled Unmastered a real Kendrick Lamar album?
It's a compilation of unreleased material from the To Pimp a Butterfly sessions, officially released but generally viewed as a companion piece rather than a standalone studio album.
Where does GNX rank among Kendrick's albums?
It's widely seen as a strong, confident late-career project, not as conceptually heavy as his classics but well regarded for its energy and timing after his feud with Drake.
What was Kendrick Lamar's first album?
Section.80, released independently through Top Dawg Entertainment, was his first official studio album/mixtape before his major label debut.
More rankings
Image credits
- To Pimp a ButterflyCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Good Kid, M.A.A.D CityCover: Wikipedia · Source
- DAMN.Cover: Wikipedia · Source
- Mr. Morale & the Big SteppersCover: Wikipedia · Source
- GNXCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Section.80Cover: Wikipedia · Source
- Untitled UnmasteredPhoto: Graphic artist: uncredited, recording artist: Kendrick Lamar, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source